Isthminia

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Isthminia
Temporal range: Late Miocene
(Messinian), ~6.1–5.8  Ma
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Isthminia holotype skull lateral.png
Holotype skull (digital model) in right lateral view
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Artiodactyla
Infraorder: Cetacea
Superfamily: Inioidea
Family: Iniidae
Genus: Isthminia
Pyenson et al., 2015
Type species
Isthminia panamensis
Pyenson et al., 2015

Isthminia (named after the Republic of Panama and its people) is a genus of medium-sized river dolphin cetaceans that lived during the Late Miocene epoch in what is now the coasts of Panama, about 6.1 million to 5.8 million years ago. The type species is I. panamensis, known from the littoral Chagres Formation. [1]

Contents

Description

Life restoration of Isthminia Isthminia restoration.png
Life restoration of Isthminia

Fossils of Isthminia were found in the Chagres Formation in Panama. On the basis of the fossil material, including a partial skull, the length of Isthminia is estimated to be about 2.85 m (9.4 ft) long. Isthminia probably had a predominantly marine lifestyle. [1]

See also

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. 1 2 Pyenson, Nicholas D.; Vélez-Juarbe, Jorge; Gutstein, Carolina S.; Little, Holly; Vigil, Dioselina; O'Dea, Aaron (2015). "Isthminia panamensis, a new fossil inioid (Mammalia, Cetacea) from the Chagres Formation of Panama and the evolution of 'river dolphins' in the Americas". PeerJ . 3: e1227. doi: 10.7717/peerj.1227 . PMC   4562255 . PMID   26355720.